Chair ganging device

ABSTRACT

A ganging device for interconnecting chairs and the like into rows, including a ganging member mounted beneath the chair on the underside of the seat portion thereof and swingable approximately 180* between a retracted position beneath the chair seat and an extended position for securement to an adjacent chair. The ganging member has self-contained resilient means which cooperates with a portion of the chair to provide a toggle arrangement to urge and hold the ganging member in either its retracted or extended position.

United States Patent [72] Inventor Robert G. Mohr 2,377,688 6/1945 Hubbell 24/252 Portage, Mich. 2,980,454 4/1961 Thaden 297/248 [211 App]. No. 882,653 3,011,227 12/1961 Vogel 297/248 [22] Filed Dec. 5, 1969 3,328,075 6/1967 Albinson 297/239 [45] Patented 0. 19, 1971 FOREIGN PATENTS [73] Assignee gtafany l gustries Inc. 40,872 M912 ilismapupuggw 24/252. l 100;707 1/1941 Sweden 297/243 V r v e Primary ExaminerFrancis K. Zugel [54] CHAIR GANGING DEVICE Attorney-Hofgren, Wegner, Allen, Stellman and McCord 3 Claims, 8 Drawing Figs.

[ n 297,248, ABSTRACT: A ganging device for interconnecting chairs and 108/64 the like into rows, including a ganging member mounted [51] Int. Cl A471: 1/124 beneath the chair on the underside f the Seat pol-ion th f Search and swingable approximately 180 between a retracted posi. 108/64; 24/252 252 252 G 252 252 tion beneath the chair seat and an extended position for 252 PC, 252-1 securement to an adjacent chair. The ganging member has self-contained resilient means which cooperates with a portion [56] References Cited of the chair to provide a toggle arrangement to urge and hold UNITED STATES PATENTS the ganging member in either its retracted or extended posi- 636,854 11/1899 Saveland 297/248 tion. h

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BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a coupling device for interconnecting chairs and similar seating furniture into a row. Such coupling devices commonly are called ganging" devices and shall be referred to herein as such. Most presently available ganging devices comprise members which are nonmovably or rigidly fixed to the sides of the chairs and which interengage with complementary rigid members on the sides of adjacent chairs. In certain environs, for esthetic as well as functional reasons, it is not desirable to have the ganging members protruding or exposed on the sides of the chairs, particularly when the chairs are not being ganged or interconnected in a row. Various attempts have been made to provide ganging devices which are movable between a retracted or stored position beneath or within the chair and an extended or use" position for securement with an adjacent chair. However, with such movable ganging devices, either separate securing means must be provided to secure the device to the adjacent chair or separate spring means must be provided to urge and/or hold the ganging member in either its retracted or extended position. This invention relates to a ganging device which is designed to solve the problems set forth above.

An object, therefore, of the present invention is to provide a new and improved ganging device and, more particularly, one which is movable from a retracted or stored position and an extended or "use" position.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the ganging device comprises a unitary wirelike member having a generally U-shape with upstanding leg portions and a cross portion. One pair of leg portions is mounted beneath the chair on the underside of the seat portion thereof for pivotal movement of the member approximately 180 between a retracted DETAILED DESCRIPTIONOF THE INVENTION In the drawings, FIG. I, the numerals l, 2 and 3 designate interconnected chairs. Each chair comprises a seat portion 4 and a back portion 6 secured in position by suitable support means to provide a chair seat and back assembly. A pair of leg units are provided on the sides of the chair and depend downwardly from the seat portion 4 thereof. Each leg unit includes a pair of downwardly diverging legs 10 joined by an upper crosspiece I2. Secured to and extending between the crosspieces 12 of each leg unit is a laterally extending cross frame 14 (FIGS. 2 and 3) which extends completely across the underside of the chair seat 4. Referring to FIGS. 2 through 8, the ganging device of the present invention comprises a unitary wirelike member, generally designated 16, having a generally U-shaped configuration. As viewed in FIGS. 2 and 3, the ganging member has upstanding leg portions 18a, 18b (when in its use position as shown in FIG. 2) and a cross portion 20. Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, in the preferred fonn of the invention, the ganging member 16 has a pair of cross portions 20 and a pair each of the leg portions 180 and 18b with each pair of leg portions 18a, 18b being joined by front-to-rear portions 22a, 22b, respectively, forming a unitary wirelike structure. The ganging member 16, as best seen in FIGS. 2 through 6, is mounted beneath a chair on the underside of the seat portion 4 and cross frame 14 and swingable approximate- Iy 180 between a retracted position (shown in FIG. 3)

position beneath the chair seat and an extended position for securement to an adjacent chair. Other leg portions provide securing means for engaging the adjacent chair, with the cross portion of the U-shaped wirelike member extending between the chairs. The one pair of leg portions has a joining portion having self-contained resiliency and cooperates with a portion of the chair to provide a toggle arrangement to urge and hold the ganging member in either its retracted or extended position.-The joining portion is held against a vertical wall formed on the underside of the chair and has bent or offset spring sections parallel to the wall and oriented so that the offset sections are compressed when the ganging member is intermediate the extended and retracted positions, whereby the walls and the bent or offset sections cooperate to provide the toggle arrangement and urge the member toward either of the aforesaid positions when the member is moved "overcenter of said intennediate portion Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a plurality of chairs interconnected in a row by the ganging device of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cutaway vertical section, on an enlarged scale, through the leg cross pieces of a pair of adjacent chairs, showing the ganging device of the present invention in its extended use" position interconnecting the chairs;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to that of FIG. 2 with the gangin device in its retracted or "stored" position;

FIG. 4 is a section taken generally along the line 4-4 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a section taken generally along the line 5-5 of fig.

FIG. 6 is a section taken generally along the line 6-6 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the ganging device; and

FIG. 8 is a top plan view of the ganging device.

beneath the chair seat and an extended position (shown in FIG. 2) for securement to an adjacent chair. As will be described in greater detail hereinafter, the front-to-rear portion 22a of the wirelike ganging member cooperates with a portion of the chair (namely, the cross frame 14) to provide a toggle arrangement to urge and hold the ganging member in either its retracted or extended positions. The cross portions 20 of the wirelike ganging member extend between the chairs and the second leg portions 18b extend upwardly, and with the front-to-rear portion 22b, for securement to an adjacent chair. The adjacent chair has a recess 24 (FIGS. 2 and 3) formed on the cross frame 14 for receiving the leg portions 18b and frontto-rear portion 22b and a boss portion 26 acts as a retainer to prevent inward movement of the ganging device, in the direction of arrow A (FIG. 2) thereby preventing movement of the chairs toward each other when interconnected together in a row.

Referring to FIGS. 5 through 8, the front-to-rear portion 220 of the wirelike ganging member has a pair of bent or ofiset sections 28 which are held against a generally parallel wall 29 (FIGS. 4, 5 and 6) formed on a portion of the cross frame I4 (as best seen in FIGS. 4 and 5) on the underside of the cross frame. The heads of a pair of screw members 32, threaded into a pair of cast mounting bosses 30, hold the ganging member in position with the offset sections 28 against wall 29. A sleeve 31 surrounds the ends of the sections 28 for bearing against wall 29. The bent or offset sections 28 form a self-contained spring means and are oriented as shown in the drawings so that the bent sections are offset generally parallel to the wall 29 only when the ganging member is in the extended and retracted positions and thebent sections 28 are compressed in a direction generally normal to the wall 29 when intermediate the retracted or extended positions of the ganging member 16. Thus, the offset sections, being compressed or under stress, when between the retracted and extended positions urge the member 16 toward either of said positions depending on which direction the member is overcenter" of the centennost position of the member. It thus can be seen that a built in biasing or toggle arrangement is provided between the wall 29 and the offset or bent sections 28 of the wirelike ganging member so that the wall and the bent or offset sections cooperate to provide the aforesaid toggle relationship. I The foregoing detailed description has been given for clearness of understanding only and no unnecessary limitations should be understood therefrom as some modifications will be obvious to those skilled in the art.

I claim:

l. A ganging device for interconnecting chairs and the like into rows, said device comprising a ganging member mounted a biasing means when compressed when the ganging member is intermediate the extended and retracted positions and beneath the chair on the underside of the seat portion thereof under stress to urge said ganging member toward said extended and retracted positions. g

' 2. The gauging device of claim 1 wherein said wall extends,

generally parallel to the sides of the chair.

3. The ganging device of claim 1' wherein said wirelike member is unitary and has a generally U-shaped configuration with a pair of upstanding leg portions and a cross portion, one leg having said bent section formed therein and the other leg providing securing means for engaging an adjacent chair with said cross portion extending between the chairs. 

1. A ganging device for interconnecting chairs and the like into rows, said device comprising a ganging member mounted beneath the chair on the underside of the seat portion thereof and swingable approximately 180* between a retracted position beneath the chair seat and an extended position for securement to an adjacent chair, said ganging member and said chair having cooperating means providing a toggle arrangement to urge and hold said ganging member in either its retracted or extended position, said ganging member being a wirelike member, and said chair having means defining a wall against which a portion of said wirelike member is held, said portion of the wirelike member having an offset section oriented parallel to the wall so that the offset section provides a biasing means when compressed when the ganging member is intermediate the extended and retracted positions and under stress to urge said ganging member toward said extended and retracted positions.
 2. The ganging device of claim 1 wherein said wall extends generally parallel to the sides of the chair.
 3. The ganging device of claim 1 wherein said wirelike member is unitary and has a generally U-shaped configuration with a pair of upstanding leg portions and a cross portion, one leg having said bent section formed therein and the other leg providing securing means for engaging an adjacent chair with said cross portion extending between the chairs. 